TSMC chip production impacted by virus attack

Posted on Monday, August 06 2018 @ 11:54 CEST by Thomas De Maesschalck
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Taiwanese semiconductor foundry TSMC confessed it got hit by a virus infection last week. A couple of the firm's fab tools got impacted and this will have a negative effect on the firm's financial results. TSMC blames a "misoperation" during the software installation process for a new tool for the spread of a virus to the company network.
Hsinchu, Taiwan, R.O.C., Aug 5, 2018 – TSMC today provided an update on the Company’s computer virus outbreak on the evening of August 3, which affected a number of computer systems and fab tools in Taiwan. The degree of infection varied by fab. TSMC contained the problem and found a solution. As of 14:00 Taiwan time, about 80% of the company’s impacted tools have been recovered, and the Company expects full recovery on August 6.

TSMC expects this incident to cause shipment delays and additional costs. We estimate the impact to third quarter revenue to be about three percent, and impact to gross margin to be about one percentage point. The Company is confident shipments delayed in third quarter will be recovered in the fourth quarter 2018, and maintains its forecast of high single-digit revenue growth for 2018 in U.S. dollars given on July 19, 2018.

Most of TSMC’s customers have been notified of this event, and the Company is working closely with customers on their wafer delivery schedule. The details will be communicated with each customer individually over the next few days.

This virus outbreak occurred due to misoperation during the software installation process for a new tool, which caused a virus to spread once the tool was connected to the Company’s computer network. Data integrity and confidential information was not compromised. TSMC has taken actions to close this security gap and further strengthen security measures.
DigiTimes writes the incident is expected to impact TSMC's Q3 2018 revenue by about 3 percent. TSMC is confident it will be able to make up for this in its fourth quarter. Orders to some customers will face delays due to the virus outbreak, but we do not have any specifics.


About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



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